A Brief History of the Camino de Santiago

Statue of Santiago in Santiago de Compostella

[NOTE that I am creating these posts on my cellphone, and don't have as much control over formatting as on a laptop!]

"Santiago" is the Spanish name for Saint James, one of the original twelve apostles of Jesus Christ as recorded in the New Testament. There are Spanish legends claiming that James preached the gospel in the Iberian peninsula (today's Spain and Portugal) following the crucifixion of Jesus, but returned to Judaea after seeing a vision of the Virgin Mary on the bank of the Ebro River in Spain. Acts 12:1-2 recorded that James was beheaded by Herod in Jerusalem (about 44 AD), the first of the apostles to be martyred. After his death, the legend says that his remains were returned by ship to northwestern Spain and buried in the city of Santiago de Compostela.

Relics associated with James were discovered in that area in the early 9th century, and the city soon became a pilgrimage site. Major routes leading there from various areas in Western Europe were established from the 10th century onward. They were highly traveled during the Middle Ages, but then interest declined with the onslaught of the Black Death and the Protestant Reformation.

Attention to the pilgrimage tradition was revived and then exploded in recent years, as the practice of walking a Camino route took on cultural, educational, and recreational aspects. There are now a number of major routes followed by modern "pilgrims" starting in Spain, France, and Portugal and ending at Santiago de Compostela. 

Some additional interesting facts about the Camino:

• Those who walk the routes today are often called "pilgrims" (peregrinos in Spanish) regardless of their motivation.
• Pilgrims typically bid farewell to each other, or locals to pilgrims, with the phrase "buen camino" - a wish for a safe and meaningful journey. In a deeper sense, the phrase acknowledges both the physical experience of walking, and the inner or spiritual journey of the pilgrim.
• The scallop shell was originally given out as a proof of completion of the Camino, since the shells are found on Spain's northern coast. That evolved into using the shells as markers to show the route, and then as an identifying badge of a pilgrim on the way to Santiago.
• The Milky Way seen in the summer sky is sometimes called "El Camino de Santiago" by Spaniards. There is a medieval legend that the Milky Way was formed from the dust raised by travelling pilgrims.
• Pilgrims today must carry a credencial that they get stamped at hostels or other locations along to way to document their journey.
• Pilgrims must complete at least 100 kilometers on foot, ending in Santiago, in order to earn an official certificate of completion. A "Compostela Certificate" (written in Latin, in recognition of the medieval roots of the tradition) is awarded to those who complete the journey for religious or spiritual reasons, or with an "attitude of search" (pletatis causa); others receive an equally impressive "Certificate of Welcome."
• In 1990, about 5,000 certificates were issued. In 2013, over 200,000 people met the requirement; that number exceeded 500,000 in 2025.
• The 2010 feature film "The Way" starting Martin Sheen did much to raise interest in walking the Camino.
• Supporting Camino pilgrims with hostels, food, supplies, etc. has become a major industry along the routes.

Tomorrow: my interest in the Camino.

Scallop shell direction indicator along route

 

Scallop shell pilgrim pendant with Saint James Cross